Ghost Stories & Paranormal Encounters

I live in a house, not very old at all, and not very far away from Concord, North Carolina. It was built in 1995, a 3,200 sq. foot, 3 story, red brick house with green shutters, located in a fairly large neighborhood. It appears as normal as could be, but once you have lived there and experienced things, it is anything but normal.

I have a whole plethora of ghostly occurrences related to the house, but I have selected the best to share on this website:

1) I was at home by myself one day, just sitting and playing my piano (dated 1878) in the front room of the house when all of the sudden I felt a cool breeze rush quickly past my back and then it felt as if someone laid an ice-cold hand on my shoulder. (Note that the windows were shut and the air conditioning unit was broken at this time.) My dogs looked straight at my back where I felt the presence and began barking like crazy. Terrified, I shot out of the house and didn’t dare go back in for another 30 minutes.

2) My friend, Emalie, was at my house and we were just to about to go outside to sit on the porch when we heard the dishes that had been lying on the kitchen counter being picked up and set down. Knowing we were the only 2 in the house, we both looked at each other and took off down the street.

3) My friend, Ashlynne, was over and we were sitting in the living room of the house where there happens to be a large mirror. I had gotten up and gone into the kitchen while Ashlynne was talking to me when all of the sudden her face turned extremely pale and drained of all color. She jumped up and ran out the front door. I chased after her and asked her what had happened. Shaking with terror, she explained to me that she had seen a transparent lady dressed in Victorian-era clothing with light brown hair walk straight across the living room, but she only had seen the reflection in the mirror. To this day, Ashlynne refuses to come to my house.

4) I was sitting alone on the porch one day reading a book with the door to the kitchen open. Then, I heard a door from the second floor slam shut. I ran up the stairs, to find that no doors had been closed, so I proceeded to the third story, only to find the same thing. Puzzled, I walked back downstairs and a little while later I heard the door slam again. I again ran back upstairs, and again there were no doors closed, but out of the corner of my eye I saw a shadow dart behind me and run into the nursery. Terrified, I chased after it, but there was nothing there when I walked into the room.

5) It was about 1:00 am, and I was lying asleep in my bed when all of the sudden I felt an intense pressure on my chest. I immediately woke up and saw a little boy with light brown hair, dressed in attire from the early 1800′s standing directly over me. He emitted a blue glow through the whole room. I screamed as loud as I could, just out of sheer terror, but I felt as if someone was holding me down and I could not get out of the bed. Then, the bed began to vibrate violently and the little boy just vanished, and everything stopped. I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs. I definitely didn’t sleep the rest of that night!

6) On Halloween, a group of trick-or-treaters had come to my door and were waiting for me to give them their candy when a little girl looked into the dining room and said “I like your costume.” Not sure as to whom she was addressing, I asked her what she was talking about. She replied, “Didn’t you see her? There was a lady dressed in a long old dress and she had her hair up in a bun.” Not wanting to scare her, I said nothing else and gave them their candy. After they left, I couldn’t help but go into the dining room to search for this lady, but found no one.

I still wonder… what are the hauntings connected to? The house isn’t old, and no one ever died in it. I do, however, have a hunch that these strange happenings are related to a) my antiques or b) the land. A Revolutionary War battle was fought on the same land my house is located, but I tend to think the antiques are more likely. I own many historic artifacts such as a grandfather clock (dated 1752), an 1856 dining room table, 1829 couch, just to mention a few. Many paranormal researches believe that spirits have the ability to attach themselves to objects.

I have many other stories, but I think that these are the most interesting ones I have to tell. I used to be a major skeptic in the paranormal, but after the many instances at my house, I became a major believer. Even though I have been startled on many occasions by the paranormal, I have never felt that anything evil lurks in my home. Many of my friends whom have experienced the paranormal in my house raise the same question: are you going to have an exorcism performed? I don’t feel threatened in my house. Nothing demonic lives here, therefore I do not see the need. I have learned to live with those who are neither living nor dead; those who simply linger on after death.

Sent in by Amy Sophea Keisser, Copyright 2010